College Admission Analysis

Naomi Yamaguchi, Karan Uppal, and Irene Tait

Introduction

  • Our goal was to better understand the applicants we are accepting and rejecting in order to paint a picture of what our admissions process values (and what it does not!)
  • As we go through this presentation, we’d like you to reflect on whether or not this data confirms or upsets your preconceived notion of the traditional applicant to this university.
  • Fundamental question: are we valuing the right qualities in our applicants?

Data Overview

  • 89 applicants from 10 states
  • 11 records discarded from analysis due to record error or missing values (12% of data)

GPA Distribution

  • Applicants skewed towards higher GPA
  • Clear trend regarding decision, with some fuzziness

GPA vs Work Experience

  • Majority of applicants with little to no work experience
  • No clear clustering or trend

GPA vs Test Scores

  • Clear clustering of all admitted students, with 1 exception
  • Some minor outliers

State by State

Majority of applicants from Florida

Some from Colorado, California, Utah, and Virginia

Admittance by State

Students accepted from only four states: California, Colorado, Florida, and Utah

Writing Scores by State

Little variation in average by state

Between 74 and 78 in average essay score across all states

Volunteer Levels by State

Significant variation by state

High volunteer levels did not correspond with admission

Conclusion

  • Our admissions process places a high value on test score and GPA, considering academic in performance in high school as a major factor
  • Essay score, work experience, and volunteer level were not considered as important
  • While we should take pride in our rigorous academic standards, we must ensure that we are not over reliant on test scores, as they are not good measures of qualities like leadership, tenacity, or kindness

Thank you!